As
an Ideal Dieter, I think this is one of those things that people can interpret
in very personal, very different ways. We’re Never Done. I’m sure Dr. Tracey
has a wonderful point of view on what that means as it relates to the Ideal
Protein protocol, and personally as well. For me, it’s more about what I’ve
learned about myself since connecting with Dr. Tracey and becoming both a
dieter and an advocate. I’ve grown tremendously since starting the Ideal
Protein protocol. I can’t attribute all of that growth to IP – that would be
unrealistic! – but here are some things that I’ve definitely learned about
myself during this interesting journey:
What
I weigh and how I look are two separate “things.” When you’re not at what you’d
consider an attractive or ideal weight, it’s easy to fall into the trap of
thinking that you don’t look your best. Says who? The voice in your head? Turn
it off. The first thing you can do for yourself when you start the Ideal
Protein protocol is to embrace yourself and how you look today fully.
That’s important for several reasons. First, self-love and self-care are
critical elements in being a fulfilled person. And, self-care is essential in
succeeding in the Ideal Protein journey. You’ll need to care about yourself
enough to have discipline, to say no to friends who offer cake, to spend hours
on Sunday preparing your meals for the week. Trust me, you’ll need this.
Second, you will struggle. You just will. That has nothing to do with Ideal
Protein. It’s the nature of change. When we undertake significant change,
we struggle. We start, stop, restart. Embracing yourself the way you are now,
today, makes it easier to push through the struggles and get to the next hour,
afternoon, day, and thus create the building blocks that ultimately yield
success.
There
are no shortcuts. Yep. I learned that too. That’s old news, right? Everyone
knows that adage. Well then, I guess I learned it all over again when I
embarked on this particular journey. I wanted to do it the IP way and a little
bit of my way. Nope. You can’t do that. You have to do it this way and only
this way. Boy is that hard! Eat 2 cups of this and 1 cup of that. Giving up
control to a diet of all things! But here is what happens when you DO give up
control and stop wanting to apply your own shortcuts…. you realize that you
weren’t in control in the first place. You weren’t in control of your eating
habits. Of how you used food to relieve stress or boredom. Of how your body was
spiking up and down from sugar intake and let downs. You weren’t in control.
The diet was. So was the lifestyle. You know, the unhealthy one that landed you
here in the first place. Give it up. Give in. Realize you can’t have control
for this particular time period. I guarantee that if you give up control and
the desire to create your own short cuts, you will learn a better way with more
control for yourself in the future. And ultimately, you’ll experience a
healthier lifestyle for a sustained period of time.
Finally….and
more directly…. I learned that I’m never done learning. I learned, just
recently about the connection between obesity and cancer (pancreatic cancer in
particular). Without getting into the science here, I’ll simply say that I’d
rather control my diet and improve my chances of staying healthy than leaving
that particular part of my life to chance. I also learned that I can concretely
change my eating habits and thoughts about food. I’m learning how to replace
eating with other activities. How to create healthy snacks (ever thought about
buying a dehydrator? It changed my life!). How to FOCUS on building one choice
into another choice into another and turning small victories into full-blown
successes.
Feels
pretty darn good. So yes, we are never done. Ask yourself where you are in your
journey of being a work in progress. What are you working on today and who can
be there to partner with you?